"The Media Viability Manifesto (MVM) provides an urgently needed common framework for joint action from the global media development community. Its aim is three-pronged: To foster conceptual clarity, to strengthen strategic collaboration between multiple stakeholders, and to align practical implemen
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tation in the field of Media Viability. The MVM is the culmination of input from 152 individuals from 55 countries and 86 organizations. It paves the way for more systematic exchange and learning, and for more strategic and coordinated action. To solve the multi-faceted journalism crisis, we need to work together." (Page 1)
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"El Manifiesto sobre la Viabilidad de los Medios de comunicación (MVM, por sus siglas en inglés) proporciona un marco común, urgentemente necesario, para la acción conjunta de la comunidad mundial de desarrollo de los medios. Su objetivo es triple: fomentar la claridad conceptual, reforzar la co
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laboración estratégica entre las diferentes partes interesadas y adaptar la implementación práctica en el ámbito de la Viabilidad de los Medios de comunicación. El MVM es la culminación de las aportaciones de 152 personas de 55 países y 86 organizaciones. Prepara el camino para un diálogo y un aprendizaje más sistemáticos, y para una acción más estratégica y coordinada. Para resolver la polifacética crisis del periodismo, tenemos que trabajar juntos." (Página 1)
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"Le Manifeste sur la viabilité des médias (MVM) établit un cadre commun, dont le besoin est urgent, pour une action conjointe de la part de la communauté mondiale du développement des médias. Son objectif est triple : Promouvoir une vision claire, renforcer la collaboration stratégique entre
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les parties prenantes et coordonner la mise en oeuvre pratique dans le domaine de la viabilité des médias. Le MVM est le fruit des contributions de 152 personnes provenant de 55 pays et de 86 organisations. Il offre une opportunité d'échange et d'apprentissage plus systématiques, et promeut une action plus stratégique et mieux coordonnée. Pour surmonter la crise multiforme du journalisme, il est impératif de travailler ensemble." (Page 1)
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"This report draws on the feedback of media development actors to present a set of recommendations for both donors and implementing agencies. These include proposed improvements to the development and roll-out of funding programmes as well as measures that can be taken by both parties to introduce m
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ore effective ways of working and enhance engagement and collaboration across the sector." (Page 1)
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"At a general level the partners have been very satisfied with the IMS partnership, with an average rating on 4.53 out of 5. The comments further support the appreciation by the partners of the partnership with IMS: 'We are so proud of our IMS-partnership because the organisation treats us as a true
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and equal partner rather than just a grantee. This is what makes IMS partnership special and appreciative'; 'IMS has allowed us to continue our creative work, network and remain relevant in our sector.'
The majority of partners work mainly within content production and public interest media. Capacity development on content was found most effective compared to other types of capacity development, and 74 percent of respondents reported that capacity development had big positive or very big positive effect. None of the partners found it to have had a limited effect or no effect at all. The survey showed that 72 percent of respondents found that their content had improved as a result of the capacity development." (Executive summary)
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"This article tries to show that media development work could be based less on the idea of cooperation, but rather be perceived as a dominance of foreign funding countries and their politics. Taking this view, the donor organisations’ perceived dominance in controlling the entire process and meeti
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ng their requirements seem to be more important than establishing relationships built on trust with the actors on site, and openness to adjust projects and funds to local needs on a more ad hoc basis. Based on a literature review and two case studies in India and Ghana, Elbers, Knippenberg and Schulpen (2014) explain why the approach to control often wins over the approach of trust; and what this means for development cooperation. According to them, the approach to control is based on the phenomenon of “development managerialism” where “[e]ffectiveness, efficiency and transparency became key principles” (page 1). Here, trust is replaced by indicators that can be controlled and measured to guarantee effectiveness and efficiency and justify funding decisions. At this point, it needs to be mentioned that donors and other funding organizations themselves have to be accountable to their central auditing authorities in their respective home countries. Thus, the focus on controlling the process at the expense of neglecting empowerment and autonomy of the recipients maybe beyond their control or intention." (Page 8)
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"International efforts aimed at developing a specific region’s or country’s media sector commonly involve both onsite actors (usually from the Global South) and external actors (usually from the Global North). Dependency theory suggests that onsite actors are (stuck) in a relationship with devel
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opment agencies and donors in which “Western” notions of journalistic ethics, communication and democracy are imposed on them – and not necessarily to their advantage. Bureaucratic imperatives and institutional dynamics especially within funding agencies have been identified as strong determinants of media development practice. Yet, recent empirical insights point to local actors’ ability to assert their own strategies in the face of donor power which can be interpreted as agency. Therefore, this paper suggests making use of structuration theory to get a clearer picture of how onsite actors enact international media development practice. Structuration theory acts on the assumption that social practice is produced and reproduced as part of a dynamic interplay between agency and structure. Applied to media development practice, it allows for the analysis of the intentions and motivations of the agents involved, the conscious or subconscious rules they act upon and also the allocative and authoritative resources at their disposal. Against this background, this contribution presents the methodological design and preliminary results of a qualitative interview study on how onsite actors in the target countries of international media development perceive and negotiate their scope of action. Online interviews were conducted with participants from various world regions such as Middle East, South Asia as well as South-East Asia. The results suggest that the cultivation of long-term relationships and a diversification of international partners allow onsite actors to strengthen their agency within international media development." (Abstract)
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"All respondents in the interviews—including those who shared a negative experience of coordination—agreed that at a minimum, sharing information and exploring synergies should be fixtures of the media development landscape in any given country. The positive impact of such activities on value fo
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r money, aid effectiveness, and public perceptions of development programmes was recognised across the board and particularly in the context of the fundamental principles of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness. Clearly, the scale of coordination work will depend largely on the volume of programming on the ground. However, even in those countries that see low levels of activity or have a single dominant programme, there was perceived value in introducing media development as a separate thematic strand in wider coordination efforts. The format and structure inherent in the selected coordination mechanism will also be shaped by the needs and priorities of local actors, but in general, a scheduled exchange of information combined with a platform for knowledge management was welcomed. The recommended level of involvement of donor organisations is a moot point since few if any coordination mechanisms have succeeded in regularly bringing donors and implementing agencies to the table. In 2016, as part of the MedMedia project, EC officials attempted to organise a roundtable for EU donors and development agencies committed to supporting media in the MENA region. Despite the best efforts of those concerned, the event was attended by representatives from just two member states—Austria and Latvia—neither of which was active in this field. Conversely, the donor coordination process that was set up in Ukraine in 2015 includes only limited representation from implementing agencies and exists in parallel to the coordination group assembled by GFMD in the wake of the Russian invasion. While GFMD invites donors to its meetings and shares information via email and online documents, the donors have yet to reciprocate. Thus, in real terms, there is no silver bullet or single best-practice model. However, based on its findings and conclusions, this report recommends that a strong level of interagency engagement should become the default position for all media development projects." (Recommendations, page 34-35)
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"Going more specific into members’ engagement with GFMD, the survey found that the top three reasons organisations participate in GFMD were for information and knowledge exchange (n = 10), policy and decision making support (n = 8), and to build networks (n = 7). Members also indicated that the re
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sources form GFMD they use the most include the #MediaDev Insider Newsletter (n = 67), GFMD website (n = 66), and mailing lists (n = 60). To a lesser extent, members engage with GFMD’s social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin) (n = 43), conference sessions organised by GFMD (n = 43), and GFMD working groups and joint initiatives (n = 41). Notably, respondents did not indicate using the policy related resources even though it was selected as one of the top three reasons for participating in GFMD." (Summary of results, page 3)
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"This report presents the results of the network analysis of GFMD members. This analysis specifically studied the communication channels used and the quality of relationships among members. The quality of relationships was assessed using measures of social capital. The report also provides recommend
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ations for strengthening the network. The contents of this report provide a quantitative baseline of the media development sector as of 2014-2015." (Executive summary)
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"The first part of this publication provides insight into the media development practices and policy frameworks of France, Germany, Norway and the United Kingdom while the second part deals with different issues and projects, such as the role of media for social transformation in Africa and coordina
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tion of international donors and implementers. The contributions to this publication indicate a broad mutual understanding of the role of, and strategies for, media development. Four common characteristics can be highlighted. First, media assistance is seen as an integral part of democracy support, mainly due to the role of media as a guarantor of accountability and platform for public discourse. Second, media assistance requires not only journalism training, but a sector approach including all levels of the media sector, as professional editorial and financial management, capable professional associations, and an enabling regulatory environment. Third, financial sustainability is of paramount importance for a functioning independent media sector, and media development cooperation must become more active in this area. Fourth, closer cooperation and partnerships among donors and implementers should be encouraged." (Executive summary)
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"The conclusions of this overview of ideas and experiences on ownership, mainly aim at stimulating the exchange of ideas on new initiatives in the area of capacity building in media development in the Southern Africa region, and Africa in general. As this study shows, ownership is a much talked abou
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t issue, in donor circles in the North as well as in organisations in the South, but the process of putting it into practice is slow. Rigid strategic objectives and the strong focus on justifiable expenditure of donor funds oftentimes twist the funding process. Organisations in the South try to fit into the donors’ objectives, but oftentimes, at the end of the day, activities are not really relevant to what they require. This is sometimes also a result of a weak mission and strategy on their part. So, ownership demands creativity, imagination, and flexibility on both sides, as well as strong leadership and strategies, and a constant fine-tuning of needs and support." (Conclusions and remarks, page 28)
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